cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/13809164
Ignoring the lack of updates if the game is buggy, games back then were also more focused on quality and make gamers replay the game with unlockable features based on skills, not money. I can't count the number of times I played Metal Gear Solid games over and over to unlock new features playing the hardest difficulty and with handicap features, and also to find Easter eggs. Speaking of Easter eggs, you'd lose a number of hours exploring every nook and cranny finding them!
The thing about updates is that they weren't needed that much. Games didn't release half broken at 3FPS because "we'll just fix it later, maybe"
Same as they don't often do today.
Most games are in early access in the state you mention. But that's the thing, it's most often clearly labeled and you are free to wait until actual release.
That's just plain better imo.
Not talking about EA games, I mean games released in a terrible state like Cities Skylines 2 or Cyberpunk
Yeah but how many more cases are there like this today compared to broken ass old games? I still remember running into/exploiting major bugs as a child. C:S2 and Cyberpunk also still mostly worked on release, but you're also picking the worst examples.